Multi-Tiered Feedback-Controlled Home Automation Notifications

ABSTRACT

Various arrangements for providing home automation notifications to users are detailed. A selection of a home automation event to trigger transmission of a home automation notification and a first group of users may be received. When the event occurs, the home automation notification may be transmitted to the first group of users. A first communication path associated with each user of the first group of users may be used for transmitting the home automation notification. For a time, monitoring can be performed to determine if a receipt response from each of the plurality of destinations is received. For users for which the receipt response was not received, the home automation notification may be sent via an alternate communication path.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 61/914,856 filed Dec. 11, 2013, entitled “Methods and Systems for Home Automation”, attorney docket number P2013-12-12 (895122), the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.

BACKGROUND

A user may desire to learn of particular types of events occurring in a home automation system. For instance, a user may desire to be notified when his or her home's doorbell is rung or the home's garage door is opened. If the user is away from the home, a notification indicative of the event may be transmitted to the user's mobile device. However, in some instances, a notification transmitted to the user's mobile device may not be delivered or may be delayed in delivery. Despite such notification issues, the user would still want to be informed of the event.

SUMMARY

Various arrangements for providing home automation notifications are presented, including methods, systems, devices, and apparatuses. A home automation host system may receive a selection of a home automation event to trigger transmission of a home automation notification. The home automation host system may receive selection of a first group of users to receive the home automation notification. The home automation host system may determine the home automation event has occurred at a home automation device in communication with the home automation host system. The home automation host system may transmit the home automation notification to a plurality of destinations associated with the first group of users, wherein a first communication path associated with each user of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification. The home automation host system may monitor for up to a defined period of time, for a receipt response from each of the plurality of destinations. The home automation host system may receive receipt responses from a first subset of the plurality of destinations. The home automation host system may determine the defined period of time has expired. The home automation host system may identify a second subset of the plurality of destinations associated with a subset of the first group of users from which the receipt response has not been received. The home automation system may transmit to each destination of the second subset of the plurality of destinations, the home automation notification, wherein a second communication path associated with each user of the subset of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification.

Such embodiments may include one or more of the following features: The plurality of destinations may include a plurality of mobile devices, each mobile device of the plurality of mobile devices being associated with a different user of the first group of users. A mobile device of the plurality of mobile devices may execute an application that functions as a background process for monitoring for home automation notifications received via a plurality of communication paths. The mobile device, via the application being executed by the mobile device, may monitor multiple communication paths for home automation notifications. The mobile device may determine, via the application being executed by the mobile device, the home automation notification has been received via the first communication path. The mobile device, may transmit the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the first communication path. The first communication path may be a push notification communication path and the receipt response is transmitted via a communication path other than the first communication path. The mobile device may determine the home automation notification has been received via the second communication path. The mobile device may transmit the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the second communication path. Determining the home automation notification has been received via the second communication path may include monitoring, by the application being executed by the mobile device, simple message service (SMS) messages being received by the mobile device for a string of characters indicative of the home automation notification. The home automation system may receive a message from a user of the first group of users, the message being indicative of a request to be excluded from receiving home automation notifications associated with the home automation event. The home automation system may determine that at least one additional user is present in the first group of users in addition to the user The home automation system may remove the user from the first group of users based on the message and determining that the at least one additional user is present in the first group of users.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A further understanding of the nature and advantages of various embodiments may be realized by reference to the following figures. In the appended figures, similar components or features may have the same reference label. Further, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label by a dash and a second label that distinguishes among the similar components. If only the first reference label is used in the specification, the description is applicable to any one of the similar components having the same first reference label irrespective of the second reference label.

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a home automation system that provides home automation notifications.

FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a home automation engine using various communication paths to communicate with one or more mobile devices.

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of a mobile device executing an application that monitors various communication paths.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing home automation notifications to one or more users.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method for providing home automation notifications to one or more users in which users are permitted to opt out.

FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a television distribution system with an integrated home automation engine.

FIG. 7 illustrates an embodiment of a computer system, which may be incorporated as part of various computerized devices.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A home automation system can provide notifications to users for certain events being detected by or occurring at home automation devices operating within the home automation system. For such events, one or more users may be notified by a host system of the home automation system sending a notification to one or more mobile devices associated with the one or more users. Multiple communication paths may be tried by the host system in order to communicate with the one or more users. For instance, push notifications, iMessages, simple message service (SMS) text messages, emails, voice messages, and posts to social media may be used by the home automation host server to communicate with a user. Such communication paths may be ranked (or tiered) by a user based on the user's preference or the preference of a user configuring a home automation rule that triggers transmission of the notification. When a notification is to be sent to the user, the home automation host system may first try the user's highest ranked communication path. The home automation host system may then monitor for a receipt response for a predefined period of time, such as two minutes. If no response is received, the next highest ranked communication path may be used to resend the notification. Again, a predefined period of time may be waited for a receipt response, such as three minutes before trying a next highest ranked communication path. The duration of the predefined period of time may be selected based on the type of communication path, the user's preference, and/or an urgency associated with the home automation rule.

On each user's mobile device (e.g., smartphone, tablet computer, wireless computerized device), an application may be installed and may be executed that communicates with the home automation host server. The application may execute in the background (e.g., as a background process) on the user's mobile device and may monitor for notifications to be received via multiple communication paths (e.g., push notifications, iMessage, SMS text messages, emails, voice messages, and posts to social media). When a notification is received, the application may cause a receipt response to be transmitted to the host server system. The receipt may indicate: a time of receipt, the communication path, an identifier of the mobile device and/or user, and an indication of whether the user has viewed the notification.

If transmission of a notification to a user is unsuccessful, another user or group of users (referred to as a fallback group of users or a fallback tier of users) may be sent the notification. Multiple communication paths may be tried for this second user or second group of users. A user, via the application, may be permitted to reorder his or her preferred communication paths. The user may also be permitted to temporarily (e.g., for a vacation) or permanently unsubscribe from notifications for a specific home automation rule. Unsubscribing from notifications may be contingent on at least one other user still being subscribed to the notification such as to prevent the situation of a rule being active but not having any available notification recipients.

A home automation system may include a host device along with one or more home automation devices that control and/or gather information about various systems and devices within a home or other form of structure (e.g., building). FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a home automation system 100 hosted by a television receiver. Television receiver 150 may be configured to receive television programming from a satellite-based television service provider; in other embodiments other forms of television service provider networks may be used, such as an IP-based network (e.g., fiber network), a cable based network, a wireless broadcast-based network, etc. In the illustrated embodiment of FIG. 1, television receiver 150 is serving as the home automation host system. It should be understood that, some other home automation device or a separate host system (e.g., a computer system or dedicated host computer) may serve as the home automation host system in lieu of television receiver 150.

In the embodiment of FIG. 1, television receiver 150 may be configured to communicate with multiple in-home home automation devices. The devices with which television receiver 150 communicates may use different communication standards. For instance, one or more devices may use a ZigBee® communication protocol while one or more other devices communicate with the television receiver using a Z-Wave® communication protocol. Other forms of wireless communication may be used by devices and the television receiver. For instance, television receiver 150 and one or more devices may be configured to communicate using a wireless local area network, which may use a communication protocol such as IEEE 802.11.

In some embodiments, a separate device may be connected with television receiver 150 to enable communication with home automation devices. For instance, communication device 152 may be attached to television receiver 150. Communication device 152 may be in the form of a dongle. Communication device 152 may be configured to allow for Zigbee®, Z-Wave®, and/or other forms of wireless communication. The communication device may connect with television receiver 150 via a USB port or via some other type of (wired) communication port. Communication device 152 may be powered by the television receiver or may be separately coupled with a power source. Communication device 152 may perform processing related to home automation control and monitoring. Communication device 152 may also output video and/or sound to television receiver 150 which can be presented via a display device connected with television receiver 150 to facilitate a user interacting with communication device 152. In some embodiments, television receiver 150 may be enabled to communicate with a local wireless network and may use communication device 152 in order to communicate with devices that use a ZigBee® communication protocol, Z-Wave® communication protocol, and/or some other home wireless communication protocols.

Communication device 152 may also serve to allow additional components to be connected with television receiver 150. For instance, communication device 152 may include additional audio/video inputs (e.g., HDMI), a component, and/or a composite input to allow for additional devices (e.g., Blu-ray players) to be connected with television receiver 150. Such connection may allow video from such additional devices to be overlaid with home automation information. Whether home automation information is overlaid onto video may be triggered based on a user's press of a remote control button.

Regardless of whether television receiver 150 uses communication device 152 to communicate with home automation devices, television receiver 150 may be configured to output home automation information for presentation to a user via display device 160, which may be a television, monitor, or other form of device capable of presenting visual information. Such information may be presented simultaneously with television programming received by television receiver 150. Television receiver 150 may also, at a given time, output only television programming or only home automation information based on a user's preference. The user may be able to provide input to television receiver 150 to control the home automation system hosted by television receiver 150 or by overlay device 151, as detailed below.

In some embodiments, television receiver 150 may not be used as a host for a home automation system. Rather, a separate device may be coupled with television receiver 150 that allows for home automation information to be presented to a user via display device 160. This separate device may be coupled with television receiver 150. In some embodiments, the separate device is referred to as overlay device 151. Overlay device 151 may be configured to overlay information, such as home automation information, onto a signal to be visually presented via display device 160, such as a television. In some embodiments, overlay device 151 may be coupled between television receiver 150, which may be in the form of a set top box, and display device 160, which may be a television. In such embodiments, television receiver 150 may receive, decode, descramble, decrypt, store, and/or output television programming. Television receiver 150 may output a signal, such as in the form of an HDMI signal. Rather than be directly input to display device 160, the output of television receiver 150 may be input to overlay device 151. Overlay device 151 may receive the video and/or audio output from television receiver 150. Overlay device 151 may add additional information to the video and/or audio signal received from television receiver 150. The modified video and/or audio signal may be output to display device 160 for presentation. In some embodiments, overlay device 151 has an HDMI input and an HDMI output, with the HDMI output being connected to display device 160. To be clear, while FIG. 1 illustrates lines illustrating communication between television receiver 150 and various devices, it should be understood that such communication may exist, in addition or alternatively via communication device 152 and/or with overlay device 151.

In some embodiments, television receiver 150 may be used to provide home automation functionality but overlay device 151 may be used to present information via display device 160. It should be understood that the home automation functionality detailed herein in relation to a television receiver may alternatively be provided via overlay device 151. In some embodiments, overlay device 151 may provide home automation functionality and be used to present information via display device 160. Using overlay device 151 to present automation information via display device 160 may have additional benefits. For instance, multiple devices may provide input video to overlay device 151. For instance, television receiver 150 may provide television programming to overlay device 151, a DVD/Blu-Ray® player may provide video overlay device 151, and a separate internet-TV device may stream other programming to overlay device 151. Regardless of the source of the video/audio, overlay device 151 may output video and/or audio that has been modified to include home automation information and output to display device 160. As such, in such embodiments, regardless of the source of video/audio, overlay device 151 may modify the audio/video to include home automation information and, possibly, solicit for user input. For instance, in some embodiments, overlay device 151 may have four video inputs (e.g., four HDMI inputs) and a single video output (e.g., an HDMI output). In other embodiments, such overlay functionality may be part of television receiver 150. As such, a separate device, such as a Blu-ray® player, may be connected with a video input of television receiver 150, thus allowing television receiver 150 to overlay home automation information when content from the Blu-Ray® player is being output to display device 160.

As an example, while television receiver 150 may output video to overlay device 151, overlay device 151 may augment or replace some or all of the video with a user interface related to home automation. For instance, when a user is making selections (e.g., selecting users, defining a home automation event that triggers a notification), the overlay device may cause a user interface to be presented to a user via display device 160. Further, when a notification is to be sent out to one or more users, the overlay device may cause display device 160 to present an indication of such a notification.

Various embodiments of a home automation engine, which performs home automation functions, including enforcement of home automation rules, are discussed herein. Such a home automation engine is executed by whichever device is serving as the home automation host, such as: overlay device 151, television receiver 150, or communication device 152. Regardless of whether television receiver 150 is itself configured to provide home automation functionality and output home automation input for display via display device 160 or such home automation functionality is provided via overlay device 151, home automation information may be presented by display device 160 while television programming is also being presented by display device 160. For instance, home automation information may be overlaid or may replace a portion of television programming (e.g., broadcast content, stored content, on-demand content, etc.) presented via display device 160.

Television receiver 150, Communication device, 152, or overlay device 151 may be configured to communicate with one or more wireless mobile devices, such as mobile device 116. Mobile device 116 may represent a tablet computer, cellular phone, laptop computer, remote computer, or some other device through which a user may desire to control home automation settings and view home automation information, such as notifications that are created and transmitted by television receiver 150, communication device 152, or overlay device 151. Television receiver 150, communication device 152, or overlay device 151 may communicate directly with mobile device 116, such as by using Bluetooth® or WiFi Direct®. A local wireless network may be used for communication with mobile device 116, such as network 170. For instance, network 170 may represent a home's wireless local area network (LAN) through which television receiver 150 may communicate with mobile device 116 while mobile device 116 is within range of the wireless LAN. However, mobile device 116 may be taken outside of the home and, thus, outside of the range of the wireless LAN. In such instances, network 170 may be used to communicate with an internet service provider (ISP), which can be used for communicating with mobile device 116. Via the Internet, television receiver 150 or overlay device 151 may be configured to transmit a notification to mobile device 116 regarding home automation information. For instance, in some embodiments, a third-party notification server system, such as the notification server system operated by Apple®, may be used to send such notifications to mobile device 116.

In some embodiments, a location of mobile device 116 may be monitored. For instance, if mobile device 116 is a cellular phone, when its position indicates it has neared a door, the door may be unlocked. A user may be able to define which home automation functions are controlled based on a position of mobile device 116. Other functions could include opening and/or closing a garage door, adjusting temperature settings, turning on and/or off lights, opening and/or closing shades, etc. Such location-based control may also take into account the detection of motion via one or more motion sensors that are integrated into other home automation devices and/or stand-alone motion sensors in communication with television receiver 150.

In some embodiments, little to no setup of network 170 may be necessary to permit television receiver 150 to stream data out to the Internet. For instance, television receiver 150 and network 170 may be configured, via a service such as Sling® or other video streaming service, to allow for video to be streamed from television receiver 150 to devices accessible via the Internet. Such streaming capabilities may be “piggybacked” to allow for home automation data to be streamed to devices accessible via the Internet. For example, U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/645,870, filed on Dec. 23, 2009, entitled “Systems and Methods for Remotely Controlling a Media Server via a Network”, which is hereby incorporated by reference, describes one such system for allowing remote access and control of a local device. U.S. Pat. No. 8,171,148, filed Apr. 17, 2009, entitled “Systems and Methods for Establishing Connections Between Devices Communicating Over a Network”, which is hereby incorporated by reference, describes a system for establishing connection between devices over a network. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/619,192, filed May 19, 2011, entitled “Systems and Methods for Delivering Messages Over a Network”, which is hereby incorporated by reference, describes a message server that provides messages to clients located behind a firewall.

Mobile device 116 may execute a home automation application and serve as an input device for television receiver 150. For instance, mobile device 116 may be a tablet computer that allows text to be typed by a user and provided to television receiver 150. Such an arrangement may be useful for responding to and managing home automation notifications, text messaging, group chat sessions, and/or other forms of communication. Other types of input may be received for the television receiver from a tablet computer, such as lighting commands, security alarm settings and door lock commands. While mobile device 116 may be used as the input device for typing text and/or acknowledging notifications, television receiver 150 may output for display text to display device 160.

In some embodiments, a cellular modem 153 may be connected with either overlay device 151 or television receiver 150. Cellular modem 153 may be useful if a local wireless network (that is connected with an ISP) is not available. For instance, cellular modem 153 may permit access to the Internet and/or communication with a television service provider. Communication with a television service provider may also occur via a local wireless or wired network connected with the Internet. In some embodiments, information for home automation purposes may be transmitted by television service provider system 110 to television receiver 150 or overlay device 151 via the television service provider's distribution network, which may include the use of satellites 630, as detailed in relation to FIG. 6.

Various home automation devices may be in communication with television receiver 150 or overlay device 151. Such home automation devices may use disparate communication protocols. Such home automation devices may communicate with television receiver 150 directly or via communication device 152. Such home automation devices may be controlled by a user and/or have a status viewed by a user via display device 160 and/or mobile device 116. Home automation devices may include: smoke/carbon monoxide detector, home security system 107, pet door/feeder 111, camera 112, window sensor 109, irrigation controller 132, weather sensor 106, shade controller 104, utility monitor 102, heath sensor 114, intercom 118, light controller 120, thermostat 122, leak detection sensor 124, appliance controller 126, garage door controller 128, doorbell sensor 123, and VoIP controller 125. A user may be interested in receiving notifications related to one, multiple, and/or all of such home automation devices (or other types of home automation devices that are not illustrated in FIG. 1). For example, if doorbell sensor 123 detects a doorbell actuation, the user may be desired to receive a notification of such. As another example, if pet door/feeder 111 is actuated, the user may desire to know about the actuation.

Door sensor 108 and lock controller 130 may be incorporated into a single device, and may allow for a door's position (e.g., open or closed) to be determined and for a lock's state to be determined and changed. Door sensor 108 may transmit data to television receiver 150 (possibly via communication device 152) or overlay device 251 that indicates the status of a window or door, respectively. Such status may indicate open or closed. When a status change occurs, the user may be notified as such via mobile device 116 or display device 160. Further, a user may be able to view a status screen to view the status of one or more door sensors throughout the location. Window sensor 109 and/or door sensor 108 may have integrated glass break sensors to determine if glass has been broken. Lock controller 130 may permit a door to be locked and unlocked and/or monitored by a user via television receiver 150 or overlay device 151. No mechanical or electrical component may need to be integrated separately into a door or door frame to provide such functionality. Such a single device may have a single power source that allows for sensing of the lock position, for sensing of the door position, and for engagement and disengagement of the lock.

Additional forms of sensors not illustrated in FIG. 1 may also be incorporated as part of a home automation system. For instance, a mailbox sensor may be attached to a mailbox to determine when mail is present and/or has been picked up. The ability to control one or more showers, baths, and/or faucets from television receiver 150 and/or mobile device 116 may also be possible. Pool and/or hot tub monitors may be incorporated into a home automation system. Such sensors may detect whether or not a pump is running, water temperature, pH level, a splash, whether something has fallen in, etc. Further, various characteristics of the pool and/or hot tub may be controlled via the home automation system. In some embodiments, a vehicle dashcam may upload or otherwise make video/audio available to television receiver 150 when within range. For instance, when a vehicle has been parked within range of a local wireless network with which television receiver 150 is connected, video and/or audio may be transmitted from the dashcam to the television receiver for storage and/or uploading to a remote server.

FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment 200 of a home automation engine using various communication paths to communicate with one or more mobile devices. Embodiment 200 may include: home automation engine 210, push notification server system 221, SMS server system 222, email server system 223, telephone service provider network 224, social media 225, network 230, and mobile devices 240 (240-1, 240-2, 240-3).

Home automation engine 210 may represent hardware, firmware, and/or software that are incorporated as part of the home automation host system, such as television receiver 150, communication device 152, or overlay device 151 of FIG. 1. Home automation engine 210 may include multiple components, which may be implemented using hardware, firmware, and/or software executed by underlying computerized hardware. Home automation engine 210 may include: home automation monitoring engine 211, defined notification rules 212, user contact database 213, notification engine 214, and receipt monitor engine 215.

Home automation monitoring engine 211 may be configured to monitor various home automation devices for events, status updates, and/or other occurrences. Home automation monitoring engine 211 may monitor information that is pushed to home automation engine 210 from various home automation devices. Home automation monitoring engine 211 may additionally or alternatively query various home automation devices for information. Defined notification rules 212 may represent a storage arrangement of rules that were configured by a user. Such defined notification rules may indicate various states, events, and/or other occurrences on which the user desires notifications to be sent to one or more users. Defined notification rules 212, which may be stored using one or more non-transitory computer readable mediums, may allow a user to define or select a particular home automation device, an event or state of the device, a user or group of users, and/or classification of the home automation state or event. For example, Table 1 presents three examples of defined notification rules which may be stored as part of defined notification rules 212. In some embodiments, it may be possible that the service provider provides home automation engine 210 with one or more default defined home automation notification rules. A user may enable or disable such default defined notification rules and/or may be permitted to create customized notification rules for storage among defined notification rules 212. A user may be permitted to enable and disable such defined notification rules as desired.

TABLE 1 Second (fallback) Home group of Automation Rule First group of users to Rule Name Device Trigger Action Classification users to notify notify “Person at Doorbell Doorbell Send Class 1 Defined Default Door” Sensor actuation Notification community 1 event [Text of Notification] [Coded Notification] “Window Window [Window Send Class 2 Custom: None Open?” Sensor state] = Notification Thomas, Jeff, open [Text of Jason, Andrew Notification] [Coded Notification] “Door Left Door Sensor [Door Send Urgent Defined Defined Ajar” state] = Notification communities 1 Community 4 open >30 [Text of and 3 seconds Notification] [Coded Notification]

In Table 1, a user (or service provider) has defined a rule name, the relevant home automation device, the trigger that causes the rule to be invoked, the action to be performed in response to the rule being triggered, the classification of the rule, a first group of users to send the notification, and a second group of users to notify if communication with the first group of users fails. To create a rule, home automation engine 210 may output a user interface that walks a user through creation of the rule such as by presenting the user with various selections. As an example, a user may first type in a name for rule. Next, the user may be presented with a list of home automation devices that are present in the home automation network with which home automation engine 210 is in communication. The user may then be permitted to select among triggers that are applicable to the selected home automation device, such as events and states that can occur at the selected home automation device. For instance, home automation devices such as a doorbell sensor may only have a single possible event: a doorbell actuation. However, in other home automation devices, such as garage door controller 128 may have multiple states, such as open, shut, and ajar. Another possible state or event may be a low battery state or event. Next, the user may select the action that the home automation engine is to perform in response to the trigger event for the home automation device occurring. For the three examples of Table 1, notifications are to be sent to various groups (called “communities”) of users.

In some embodiments, a user may be permitted to select a classification for each rule. The classification may designate the urgency of the rule. Depending on the classification, the communication channels tried for communication with the user and/or the amount of time for which home automation engine 210 waits for a response before trying another communication channel may be controlled. The user may also define one or more groups of users that are to receive the notifications. The first group of users may include one or more users and may indicate which users are to initially receive a notification. The second group of users may remain undefined for a particular rule or may specify one or more users that are to receive the notification if the notification failed to be received by one, more than one, or all users indicated as part of the first group of users.

If a particular grouping of users is to collectively receive notifications, a user may be permitted to define a “community” rather than specifying each user individually. For instance, a user may select from among available users to create “defined community 1,” which may include users such as: “Thomas,” “Nick,” and “Mary.” By specifying “defined community 1” the user may not have to individually select these three users in association with the rule. Such a use of defined communities is exemplified in Table 1.

User contact database 213 may specify definitions of groups of users and orderings of communication paths for individual users and/or classifications. Table 2 presents an exemplary embodiment of an ordering of communication paths for particular user.

TABLE 2 First Second Third Fourth User Communica- Communica- Communica- Communica- Name tion Path tion Path tion Path tion Path Andrew Push SMS Text Email (Fail) Social Media Notification Message Post (Fail) Jeff SMS Text Push Voice call Email (fail) Message Notification Jason Push SMS Text Email (Fail) — Notification Thomas SMS Text Voice Call — —

For each user, one or more communication paths are defined. For example, for the user named Andrew, the first communication path is a push notification. His second communication Path is an SMS text message. The SMS text message may be used as the communication path if a receipt response is not received in response to transmission of a push notification within a defined period of time. Similarly, if the second communication path fails to yield a receipt being received by receipt monitor engine 215 after a predefined period of time, an email, which is Andrew's third communication path, may be used to send the notification. Entries in Table 2 labeled as “Fail” may be indicative of a communication path that may receive the notification but from which a receipt is not expected and is treated as a failed communication attempt. For instance, an email sent to an email address associated with Andrew may go through and may be accessible by Andrew the next time he accesses his email account; however, notification engine 214 may send the notification via the fourth communication path without waiting a defined period of time since a receipt is not expected to be received in response to the email. For different users, different communication paths may be ordered differently. For instance, an SMS text message is defined as Jeff's first communication path while an SMS text message is defined as Andrew's second communication path. Each user via an application on his or her mobile device, or by directly interacting with the home automation host system executing home automation engine 210, may customize which communication paths are used for their notifications and the ordering of such communication paths.

For each type of communication path, a default period of time to wait for a receipt response may be defined. For instance, for push notifications, a default wait period of time may be one minute, while the default wait period of time for an SMS text message may be two minutes. Such wait periods of time may be tied to the classification of the rule. For instance, a classification of urgent may cause the period of time to be halved. In some embodiments, a user can customize his wait periods of time. For users, various alternate orderings of communication paths may be created based on the classification of the rule and/or whether the user is part of the first group of users or the second, fallback group of users.

When home automation monitoring engine 211 determines that a rule of defined notification rules 212 has been triggered, notification engine 214, by accessing user contact database 213, may begin transmitting one or more notifications to one or more users using one or more communication paths. Notification engine 214 may be configured to try communicating with the user via a first communication path, then waiting a defined period of time to determine if a receipt is received in response notification. If not, notification engine 214 may use user contact database 213 to determine the next communication path for use in communicating with the user. Notification engine 214 may then use such a communication path to try to communicate with the user. Notification engine 214 may determine when communication with a particular user has failed and, if available, a second group of users, which can be referred to as a fallback group of users, should receive a notification instead. In such an instance, notification engine 214 may then use user contact database 213 in order to communicate with the second group of users via the ordering of defined communication paths.

While notification engine 214 may cause notifications to be transmitted to users via various communication paths, receipt monitor engine 215 may monitor for received receipts that are indicative of delivery of the notification. Receipt monitor engine 215 may inform notification engine 214 when a notification has been received and further notifications to that user are unnecessary. Receipt monitor engine 215 may cause information to be stored by home automation engine 210 indicative of the circumstances under which the notification was received. For instance, receipt monitor engine 215 may create a database entry that is indicative of the user, the time of receipt (or of viewing by the user), and the communication path that was successful in causing the notification to reach the user.

Illustrated in embodiment 200 are various communication paths that may be used by notification engine 214 for communicating with various users' mobile devices. These communication paths include: push notification server system 221, SMS server system 222, email server system 223, telephone service provider network 224, social media 225, and network 230. Push notification server system 221 may be a system that causes a mobile device to display a message such that the message must be actively dismissed by the user prior to or otherwise interacting with the mobile device. As such, a push notification has a high likelihood of being viewed by user since the user is required to dismiss the push notification before performing any other functions, home automation related or not, with the mobile device.

SMS server system 222 may cause text messages to be sent to mobile devices. Typically, a mobile device provides an alert, such as a sound of flashing light or vibration to user to indicate that a new text message has been received. However, it is possible for a user to interact with a mobile device that has received a new SMS text message without viewing or otherwise interacting with the text message. Other forms of messaging systems may additionally or alternatively be used, such as Apple's iMessage service. Email server system 223 may serve as an email service provider for user. An email transmitted to a user, that is sent to email server system 223 may be viewed by the user the next time the user accesses email server system 223. In some embodiments, emails are actively pushed by email server system 223 to an application being executed by a user's mobile device, thus increasing the likelihood that a user will look at the email shortly after it has been sent. In other embodiments, a user's mobile device may be required to be triggered by the user to retrieve emails from email server system 223, such as by executing an application associated with the email server system or by logging in to the user's email account via a web browser being executed by the mobile device.

Telephone service provider network 224 may permit voice calls to be performed to a mobile device. A user operating such a mobile device may answer a telephone call to hear a recorded message that is transmitted by notification engine 214 or, if the user does not answer, a voicemail may be left for the user using telephone service provider network 224. Social media 225 may represent various social media networks through which notification engine 214 can try to communicate with the user. Social media may for example include: Twitter®, Facebook®, Tumblr®, LinkedIn®, and/or various other social networking websites. Notification engine 214 may directly transmit a message to a user via social media 225 (e.g., Facebook® Messenger) or may create a post to one or more social media websites via a shared or dedicated social media account that could be viewed by the user. For example, notification engine 214 may have login credentials to a Twitter® account that can be used to post a message indicative of the home automation notification. If the user is following the Twitter® account associated with the notification engine, the notification would be listed in the user's Twitter® feed. If such posts are public (that is, available to be viewed by members of the public, such as on Twitter®), the social media post may be “coded” such that it would only make sense to the user. A user, by configuring an alternate notification text at home automation engine 210 (as indicated in Table 1) may assign coded words or phrases to various home automation events that would be posted to public social media. For instance the door being left ajar may be assigned: “The cat is out of the bag” is a coded message to be posted to social media, while a direct message (e.g., SMS text message) would not be coded, such as: “Your home's front door is ajar.” While to a member of the public, a coded notification may be nonsensical, to the user who configured the notification, the coded notification may be quickly interpreted as meaning his home's front door has been left ajar.

Network 230 may represent one or more public and/or private networks through which notification engine 214 and receipt monitor engine 215 may communicate with a mobile device. For instance network 230 may represent a home wireless network, such as network 170, and/or the Internet. For instance, if notification engine 214 has an IP address of mobile device 240-1, it may be possible for notification engine 214 to directly transmit a notification via network 230 to mobile device 240-1. Additionally or alternatively, mobile device 240-1 may be executing an application that can communicate directly with home automation engine 210 via network 230. Home automation engine 210 and a mobile device may alternatively or additionally communicate with service provider host system 250, which is accessible via network 230, and serves as an intermediary for communications between home automation engine 210 and mobile device. For instance, a message to be transmitted from mobile device 240-1 to home automation engine 210 may be transmitted by mobile device 240-1 to service provider host system 250 via network 230. Home automation engine 210 may periodically query service provider host system 250 via network 230 to determine if any messages are pending for home automation engine 210. In response to such a query, the message transmitted by mobile device 240-1 destined for home automation engine 210 may be retrieved by home automation engine 210.

Three mobile devices are illustrated in embodiment 200. Each of such mobile devices may be associated with a different user. In embodiment 200, such mobile devices are shown as only being available via specific communication paths. This is for example purposes only. For instance, mobile device 240-1 can communicate with home automation engine 210 via push notification server system 221 (which may be unidirectional to mobile device 240-1), and network 230 (such as via communications coordinated by service provider host system 250). Mobile device 240-2 may, for some reason, be unable to receive push notifications sent via push notification server system 221 but may be able to send and receive SMS texts via SMS server system 222. Mobile device 240-3 may be currently unavailable via any of the illustrated communication paths. For example, based on where mobile device 240-3 is located, it may be unable to communicate with a wireless network that enables access to one or more of the communication paths illustrated in FIG. 2 or the mobile device may be turned off.

It should be understood that the communication paths, components of home automation engine 210, and the number of mobile devices 240 are intended to represent examples. For instance, notifications may be sent to types of devices other than mobile devices. For instance, for a user, while the first notification may be sent to the user's mobile device, a second communication path may communicate with the user's desktop computer. Further various components of home automation engine 210 may be divided out into a greater number of components or may be combined into fewer components.

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of a mobile device 300 executing an application that monitors various communication paths. Mobile device 300 may represent each of mobile devices 240 or some other form of mobile device that is receiving notifications from a home automation engine via various possible communication paths. Mobile device 300, which may be a cellular phone, smart phone, table computer, laptop, in-dash network-enabled navigation system, or other form of a wireless and/or mobile computerized device, may execute application 301. Application 301 may be executed in the background such that when a user is not interacting with application 301, a process of application 301 can monitor various communication paths of mobile device 300. A user may also bring application 301 to the foreground, such that the user can view a user interface of application 301 and generally interact with application 301. Application 301 may include: push notification monitor engine 311, SMS monitor engine 312, email monitor engine 313, social media monitor engine 314, presentation engine 320, and receipt response engine 340. Such modules may be implemented using software that is executed on underlying hardware.

Push notification monitor engine 311 may monitor for when a push notification is received by mobile device 300 that includes a notification from notification engine 214 of home automation engine 210. The operating system of mobile device 300 may cause the push notification to be presented by a display of mobile device 300 such that a user is required to view and dismiss the push notification before performing any other function on mobile device 300. The push notification, when displayed, may present text of the push notification indicative of the home automation event. For instance, returning to Table 1 for the “Person at Door” event, the corresponding [Text of Notification] from the event may be presented as part of the push notification. Additional information may include the time at which the event occurred and a location of the home automation engine (which may be useful if the user has home automation systems installed at multiple locations, such as a primary home, office building, and vacation home). Push notification monitor engine 311 may determine 1) that the push notification has been received by mobile device 300; and 2) if the user has dismissed the push notification.

SMS monitor engine 312 may monitor for when a text message is received by mobile device 300 that includes a notification from notification engine 214 of home automation engine 210. SMS monitor engine 312 may monitor for a particular string of characters that is indicative of the home automation engine 210 or the source number from which the SMS text message may be indicative of the home automation engine. The operating system of mobile device 300 may cause the text message to be stored and may cause the mobile device 300 to output vibration, sound, and/or light indicative of the received text message. The user may need to select the text message for presentation or the text message may be automatically displayed by mobile device 300. The text of the SMS message may present text indicative of the home automation event. For instance, as with the push message, returning to Table 1 for the “Person at Door” event, the corresponding [Text of Notification] from the event may be presented as part of the SMS message. Additional information may include the time at which the event occurred and a location of the home automation engine. SMS monitor engine 312 may determine 1) that the SMS message containing the notification has been received by mobile device 300; and 2) if the user has viewed the SMS text containing the notification.

Email monitor engine 313 may monitor for when an email is received by mobile device 300 that includes a notification from notification engine 214 of home automation engine 210. Email monitor engine 313 may monitor for a particular string of characters in either the body or subject line of the email that is indicative of the home automation engine 210 or the sender from which the email was received may be indicative of the home automation engine. The email may be added to an inbox of mobile device 300 and an operating system of mobile device 300 may cause vibration, sound, and/or light to be output that is indicative of the received email. The user may need to select an email application and the email for the email to be presented by mobile device 300. The text of the email may present text indicative of the home automation event. For instance, as with the push message and the SMS text message, returning to Table 1 for the “Person at Door” event, the corresponding [Text of Notification] from the event may be presented as part of the SMS message. Additional information may include the time at which the event occurred and a location of the home automation engine. Since an email can contain significantly more information than an SMS text or push notification, more details regarding the home automation event and system may be presented as part of the email. Email monitor engine 313 may determine 1) that the email message containing the notification has been received by mobile device 300; and 2) if the user has opened the email containing the notification.

Social media monitor engine 314 may monitor for when a social media post is made by home automation engine 210 that is indicative of a notification. As such, social media monitor engine 314 may periodically check one or more social media feeds for posts either privately sent to a user of mobile device 300 or publically posted. Social media monitor engine 314 may monitor for a particular string of characters that is indicative of the home automation engine 210 or the username or account from which the post was made which is indicative of the home automation engine. The text of the social media post may present text indicative of the home automation event. For instance, as with the push message, returning to Table 1 for the “Person at Door” event, the corresponding [Text of Notification] from the event may be presented as part of the social media post. If the post is made publically, a code message may be posted instead of the [Text of Notification]. For instance, referring to Table 1, [Coded Notification] may be publically posted instead of [Text of Notification]. Additional information posted may include the time at which the event occurred and a location of the home automation engine. Social media monitor engine 314 may determine 1) mobile device 300 has received the social media post (e.g., in an updated Twitter® feed); and 2) if the user has viewed the social media message containing the notification or the social media feed containing the notification.

Voice call monitor engine 315 may monitor for when a voice call or voicemail is received by mobile device 300 that includes a notification from notification engine 214 of home automation engine 210. Voice call monitor engine 315 may monitor for a particular phone number from which the call is originating to determine that a notification from the home automation engine has been received. The operating system of mobile device 300 may cause an indication of the voice message to be presented via output vibration, sound, and/or light. The user may need to answer the call or listen to the voicemail in order to receive the notification. Voice call monitor engine 315 may determine 1) whether the notification has been received; and 2) if the user has listened to the voicemail or answered the call. The voice call or voicemail may include synthesized voice that reads the notification for the home automation event. Additional information may include the time at which the event occurred and a location of the home automation engine.

In some embodiments, it may not be possible to monitor various communication paths. For instance, a user may have his email only accessible via a specialized application (e.g., Google'S® Gmail™ application). As such, the user may receive the email; however, email monitor engine 313 may not be able to determine that the email has been received. During an initial configuration, home automation engine 210 may test communication paths with application 301 when it is known or expected that such communication paths are functional. Such a test may determine which communication paths of application 301 will be able to acknowledge receipt of notifications. When a notification cannot be acknowledged, notification engine 214 may still use such a communication path to send a notification but may assume transmission has failed and/or may only use such a communication path as a final attempt. For instance, such communication paths are noted in Table 2 with the “(fail)” designation.

A user may view the push notifications, SMS texts, emails, social media posts and/or messages, and (listen to) voice calls directly. Additionally, when one of the monitor engines (311-315) notes that a notification has been received, presentation engine 320 may be triggered to present an additional or alternate indication of the notification. For instance, if the user launches application 301 (such that it is displayed and no longer only executed in the background of mobile device 300), presentation engine 320 may cause information regarding the notification to be presented in a user friendly format and may allow the user to perform various actions in response to the notification. For instance, if the notification is “Door left ajar,” the user may have the ability to select from “View security camera feed,” “Call at-home User” (which may determine, such as based on geo-positioning, a user who is within the home) and “Call 911.”

Receipt response engine 340 may receive information from engines 311-315 that is indicative of a notification being received and/or of the notification being viewed, dismissed, or heard by the user. Receipt response engine 340 may generate and cause a response to be transmitted by mobile device 300 to receipt monitor engine 215 of home automation engine 210. The receipt response may indicate the time at which the notification was received and/or viewed/heard by the user.

The systems of FIGS. 1-3 may be used to perform various methods. FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a method 400 for providing home automation notifications to one or more users. Method 400 may be performed using one or more of the systems of FIGS. 1-3. Specifically, each step of method 400 may be performed using home automation engine 210, which could be executed by television receiver 150, overlay device 151, communication device 152, or some other computerized device serving as the home automation host.

At block 405, indication of a home automation event for which a notification is desired to be set by user may be received. The home automation engine may be configured to present a user with a listing of available home automation devices and/or a listing of home automation events associated with such devices from which the user is permitted to select. Therefore, in some embodiments, a user may first select a home automation device for which the user desires to receive a related notification. Second, the user may select a particular event associated with that home automation device for which the notification will be sent.

At block 410, the user interacting with the home automation engine may select one or more users to receive the notification of the home automation event selected at block 405. The user may, of course, select himself and/or one or more other users. For each of the users selected at block 410, a user profile containing contact information for each of these users may have been previously created. Such information, along with preferences on communication paths for communicating with such users, may be stored as part of the user contact database, such as user contact database 213 of FIG. 2.

In some embodiments, the user may be permitted to select one or more communication paths for use for the home automation event notification sent to the users of block 410. In other embodiments, the default communication paths defined in a user contact database may instead be used. As such, if communication paths are specified at block 415, such communication paths may override the default communication paths stored in a user contact database. For instance, the user may specify that each user specified at block 410 is to initially receive notification via a text message. If multiple communication paths are specified at block 415, these communication paths may be ranked such that the highest ranked communication path is tried first and if no response is received, the next highest ranked communication path is tried, and so on.

At block 420, a fallback selection of one or more users (also referred to as a second group of users) may be received. These fallback users may only be notified of the home automation event if a receipt response indicative of the notification being received (and, possibly, read) is not received from at least one of the users specified at block 410. For instance, the user may specify one or more other users at block 410 and himself at block 420. In such an instance, the user will only be notified when the one or more other users fail to acknowledge receipt of the home automation notification. In some embodiments, multiple communication passes may also be selected for the one or more users identified as fallback recipients of the home automation notification.

At block 425, the home automation rule may be created based on the information received from the user at blocks 405 through 420. The rule may indicate the home automation device and the event of the device to be monitored, a first group of users to initially receive the notification, one or more communication paths to try for the initial group of users, a fallback group of one or more users who are to receive the notification if communication to the first group fails, and one or more communication paths to use for the fallback one or more users. The rule may be enabled and disabled as desired by the user via the home automation engine. By default, created rule may be enabled. In some embodiments, a user may be permitted to specify dates and/or time ranges for which the rules are valid. For instance, the user may only want a particular rule to be turned on at night.

At block 430, each user that was indicated at block 410 and/or the users indicated as fallback selections at block 420 may be notified of their inclusion as a recipient of the home automation event notification. Such a message created and transmitted at block 430 may serve to alert such users as to their inclusion as part of the home automation rule. The communication paths specified at block 415 may be used for providing the message at block 430. Therefore, the message transmitted at block 430 may also serve to test the communication paths with the users specified at block 410 and block 420.

At block 435, a request to unsubscribe from the home automation rule notification may be received. The message provided to each user at block 430 may provide the user with instructions as to how to unsubscribe from the home automation rule. For instance, the user may access an application executed by his mobile device and provide input indicating that he does not desire to receive notifications associated with the rule.

At block 440, a determination may be made by the home automation engine to determine if unsubscribing is an option for the user from which the request was received at block 435. Unsubscribing may not be an option if the user is the only remaining user selected to receive the home automation notification. For instance, if only the user is present in the group of users specified at block 410 and also the users specified at block 420, the user may not be permitted to unsubscribe as the user would be the only person receiving the notification. Instead, another user may be required to be added to receive the notification or the rule may be required to be disabled or deleted. In some embodiments, if all users are deleted, the user who created the rule is by default added to receive the notification. It may not be permitted to have a rule that is active for which there are no users selected to receive notifications. This may serve as a safety measure such that a home automation notification cannot be created and then have all of its associated users unsubscribe from receiving the notification, which would cause the notification to go unseen.

If one or more other users are still selected to receive the home automation notification, the user may be unsubscribed at block 445. Once unsubscribed, the user may not receive the home automation notification when the home automation event occurs. If the user is unable to unsubscribe, the user may be informed as such at block 450 and the user may be maintained as selected in one of the groups specified at blocks 410 and 420. In some embodiments, the user who set up the groups of users to receive the notification at block 410 and 420 may have specified one or more users as being required. If indicated as such, unsubscribing from the rule may not be permitted without editing the home automation rule directly.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a method 500 for providing home automation notifications to one or more users in which users are permitted to opt out. Method 400 may be performed using one or more of the systems of FIGS. 1-3. Specifically, each step of method 400 may be performed using home automation engine 210, which could be executed by television receiver 150, overlay device 151, communication device 152, or some other computerized device serving as a home automation host system.

At block 510, the home automation engine may determine that a home automation event has occurred. The home automation engine may have determined that the home automation event has occurred by receiving an indication of the event from a home automation device in communication with the home automation engine. In some embodiments, the home automation engine may send a status request to home automation devices. In response to such a request, a home automation device may send a status update to the home automation engine, which may serve to indicate that the home automation event has occurred. The home automation event may be determined at block 510 to trigger a home automation rule, such as a rule that was previously defined in accordance with method 400 of FIG. 4.

At block 520, one or more users that are to receive the home automation notification are identified. The rule determined to be triggered at block 510 may have one or more users associated with it that are to receive the notification. Referring to Table 1, a “first group of users to notify” may be specified. These one or more users may receive the notification via a first communication identified for each user. The communication paths that are to be used for each user may be determined at block 520 by accessing a storage arrangement, such as user contact database 213 of home automation engine 210.

At block 530, the home automation notification may be transmitted to each user identified in the first group using each user's highest ranked communication path. The notification may be transmitted to a mobile device associated with the user, which serves as the destination of the notification. The highest ranked communication path may vary by user or may be the same for each user. FIG. 2 shows examples of various communication paths. At block 540, a receipt response may be monitored for. The destination device of the notification may create and transmit the receipt response. The receipt response being received may be monitored for a predefined time either associated with the rule or the communication path. For example, if the communication path is an SMS text message, the defined monitor time period may be two minutes. A different time period may be used for another communication path, such as a push notification or email.

It has been previously detailed in relation to FIG. 3 how an application being executed by a mobile device (or other form of computerized device) can monitor for home automation notifications and cause a receipt response to be transmitted to the home automation engine, either via the same communication path (if available) or via a different communication path. For instance, push notifications may be unidirectional, that is, only available for transmission to a mobile device. The mobile device's application may use a text message, http message, or some other communication path to provide a receipt response to the home automation engine in response to the push notification. However, if the communication path is bidirectional, such as SMS, the mobile device may attempt to use the same communication path to transmit a receipt response to the home automation engine. If transmission fails, another communication path may be used.

If a receipt response is determined as being received from a user's device in response to the transmitted notification, method 500 may proceed to block 580 from block 550. At block 580, an indication of the user that received the response, when the notification was received by the user's device that served as the destination device, and the successful communication path may be stored by the home automation engine. Once the notification has been acknowledged as received by a user's device, no further action may be necessary for that particular user. However, method 500 may continue if one or more other users are to be notified. If no receipt response is determined as being received from the user's device, method 500 may proceed to block 560. At block 560, a determination may be made if an alternate communication path is available for the user. For instance, a second communication path may be specified for the user that is lower in priority than the failed communication path. If block 560 is determined in the affirmative, method 500 may proceed back to block 530. The next communication path may then be attempted for the user, along with monitoring for the receipt response at block 540. This process may repeat for the user until all communication paths available for the user are exhausted. In some embodiments, a home automation rule may specify that the notification only needs to be received by a single user of a group. Therefore, once a user's device acknowledges receipt, attempts made via other communication paths for other users may be ended.

A notification may only be considered received by a user if a receipt response is received by the home automation engine. In some embodiments, receipts are used to acknowledge when a user's device has received the notification. Additionally or alternatively, receipts may be used to acknowledge when a user has read the notification (e.g., the notification has been displayed while the user is interacting with the destination device). Some communication paths may not permit a receipt response to be generated. For instance, if the communication path used is a voicemail, it may not be possible to determine if the voicemail has been received by the user or the user's device. As such, such a notification may be considered as having failed to be delivered because it is not possible to confirm receipt by the user's device.

If all communication paths fail for all of the users in a first group, a second, fallback group of one or more users may be notified at block 570. At block 570, one or more fallback users may be notified, such as identified as in Table 1. Following the one or more fallback users being identified at block 570, method 500 may proceed to block 530, such that the home automation notification is sent to the one or more fallback users. As with users in the first group, once the home automation notification may be sent, the home automation engine may monitor for a receipt response for a period of time, then may proceed to try a different communication path for the user if a receipt response has not been received (the home automation engine may monitor for a receipt that indicates the notification has been received or read, depending on how the rule was initially configured). This loop may continue until a user's device that serves as the destination acknowledges receipt of the notification or all of a user's communication paths are exhausted. In some embodiments, if one fallback user's device acknowledges receipt, the home automation engine may cease sending notifications to home automation devices of other users.

FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of a satellite television distribution system 600 with an integrated home automation engine 210 as part of a television receiver. Similarly, a home automation engine may be executed by a device in communication with a television receiver, such as an overlay device or communication device as detailed in relation to FIG. 1. Home automation features, including the systems and methods detailed herein, can be integrated with satellite television distribution system 600. Cable, IP-based, wireless and broadcast-focused systems are also possible. Satellite television distribution system 600 may include: television service provider system 610, satellite transmitter equipment 620, satellites 630, satellite dish 640, television receiver 650, home automation service server 612, and display device 660. Alternate embodiments of satellite television distribution system 600 may include fewer or greater numbers of components. While only one satellite dish 640, television receiver 650, and display device 660 are illustrated, it should be understood that multiple (e.g., tens, thousands, millions of) instances and types of user equipment may receive data and television signals from television service provider system 610 via satellites 630.

Television service provider system 610 and satellite transmitter equipment 620 may be operated by a television service provider. A television service provider may distribute television channels, on-demand programming, programming information, and/or other content/services to users. Television service provider system 610 may receive feeds of one or more television channels and content from various sources. Such television channels may include multiple television channels that contain at least some of the same content (e.g., network affiliates). To distribute television channels for presentation to users, feeds of the television channels may be relayed to user equipment via multiple television distribution satellites. Each satellite may relay multiple transponder streams. Satellite transmitter equipment 620 may be used to transmit a feed of one or more television channels from television service provider system 610 to one or more satellites 630. While a single television service provider system 610 and satellite transmitter equipment 620 are illustrated as part of satellite television distribution system 600, it should be understood that multiple instances of transmitter equipment may be used, possibly scattered geographically, to communicate with satellites 630. Such multiple instances of satellite transmitting equipment may communicate with the same or with different satellites. Different television channels may be transmitted to satellites 630 from different instances of transmitting equipment. For instance, a different satellite dish of satellite transmitter equipment 620 may be used for communication with satellites in different orbital slots.

Satellites 630 may be configured to receive signals, such as streams of television channels, from one or more satellite uplinks such as satellite transmitter equipment 620. Satellites 630 may relay received signals from satellite transmitter equipment 620 (and/or other satellite transmitter equipment) to multiple instances of user equipment via transponder streams. Different frequencies may be used for uplink signals 670 from downlink signals 680. Satellites 630 may be in geosynchronous orbit. Each of the transponder streams transmitted by satellites 630 may contain multiple television channels transmitted as packetized data. For example, a single transponder stream may be a serial digital packet stream containing multiple television channels. Therefore, packets for multiple television channels may be interspersed. Further, information used by television receiver 650 for home automation functions may be also relayed to television receiver via one or more transponder streams.

Multiple satellites 630 may be used to relay television channels from television service provider system 610 to satellite dish 640. Different television channels may be carried using different satellites. Different television channels may also be carried using different transponders of the same satellite; thus, such television channels may be transmitted at different frequencies and/or different frequency ranges. As an example, a first and second television channel may be relayed via a first transponder of satellite 630-1. A third, fourth, and fifth television channel may be relayed via a different satellite or a different transponder of the same satellite relaying the transponder stream at a different frequency. A transponder stream transmitted by a particular transponder of a particular satellite may include a finite number of television channels, such as seven. Accordingly, if many television channels are to be made available for viewing and recording, multiple transponder streams may be necessary to transmit all of the television channels to the instances of user equipment.

Satellite dish 640 may be a piece of user equipment that is used to receive transponder streams from one or more satellites, such as satellites 630. Satellite dish 640 may be provided to a subscriber for use on a subscription basis to receive television channels provided by the television service provider system 610, satellite transmitter equipment 620, and/or satellites 630. Satellite dish 640, which may include one or more low noise blocks (LNBs), may be configured to receive transponder streams from multiple satellites and/or multiple transponders of the same satellite. Satellite dish 640 may be configured to receive television channels via transponder streams on multiple frequencies. Based on the characteristics of television receiver 650 and/or satellite dish 640, it may only be possible to capture transponder streams from a limited number of transponders concurrently. For example, a tuner of television receiver 650 may only be able to tune to a single transponder stream from a transponder of a single satellite at a given time. The tuner can then be re-tuned to another transponder of the same or a different satellite. A television receiver 650 having multiple tuners may allow for multiple transponder streams to be received at the same time.

In communication with satellite dish 640 may be one or more television receivers. Television receivers may be configured to decode signals received from satellites 630 via satellite dish 640 for output and presentation via a display device, such as display device 660. A television receiver may be incorporated as part of a television or may be part of a separate device, commonly referred to as a set-top box (STB). Television receiver 650 may decode signals received via satellite dish 640 and provide an output to display device 660. On-demand content, such as PPV content, may be stored to a computer-readable storage medium. A television receiver is defined to include set-top boxes (STBs) and also circuitry having similar functionality that may be incorporated with another device. For instance, circuitry similar to that of a television receiver may be incorporated as part of a television. As such, while FIG. 6 illustrates an embodiment of television receiver 650 as separate from display device 660, it should be understood that, in other embodiments, similar functions may be performed by a television receiver integrated with display device 660. Television receiver 650 may include home automation engine 210, as detailed in relation to FIG. 2.

Display device 660 may be used to present video and/or audio decoded and output by television receiver 650. Television receiver 650 may also output a display of one or more interfaces to display device 660, such as an electronic programming guide (EPG). In many embodiments, display device 660 is a television. Display device 660 may also be a monitor, computer, or some other device configured to display video and, possibly, play audio.

Uplink signal 670-1 represents a signal between satellite transmitter equipment 620 and satellite 630-1. Uplink signal 670-2 represents a signal between satellite transmitter equipment 620 and satellite 630-2. Each of uplink signals 670 may contain streams of one or more different television channels. For example, uplink signal 670-1 may contain a first group of television channels, while uplink signal 670-2 contains a second group of television channels. Each of these television channels may be scrambled such that unauthorized persons are prevented from accessing the television channels.

Downlink signal 680-1 represents a signal between satellite 630-1 and satellite dish 640. Downlink signal 680-2 represents a signal between satellite 630-2 and satellite dish 640. Each of downlink signals 680 may contain one or more different television channels, which may be at least partially scrambled. A downlink signal may be in the form of a transponder stream. A single transponder stream may be tuned to at a given time by a tuner of a television receiver. For example, downlink signal 680-1 may be a first transponder stream containing a first group of television channels, while downlink signal 680-2 may be a second transponder stream containing a different group of television channels. In addition to or instead of containing television channels, a transponder stream can be used to transmit on-demand content to television receivers, including PPV content (which may be stored locally by the television receiver until output for presentation).

FIG. 6 illustrates downlink signal 680-1 and downlink signal 680-2, being received by satellite dish 640 and distributed to television receiver 650. For a first group of television channels, satellite dish 640 may receive downlink signal 680-1 and for a second group of channels, downlink signal 680-2 may be received. Television receiver 650 may decode the received transponder streams. As such, depending on which television channels are desired to be presented or stored, various transponder streams from various satellites may be received, descrambled, and decoded by television receiver 650.

Network 690, which may include the Internet, may allow for bidirectional communication between television receiver 650 and television service provider system 610, such as for home automation-related services provided by home automation service server 612. Network 690 may be connected with or represent the same network as network 170 of FIG. 1. Home automation service server 612 may forward important information to home automation engine 210. For instance, a home automation rule may be set up that is triggered when new information is received from home automation service server 612. Such information may include information relevant to the user, such as a newly released on-demand television program that the user is interested in. In addition or in alternate to network 690, a telephone (e.g., landline) or cellular connection may be used to enable communication between television receiver 650 and television service provider system 610.

A computer system as illustrated in FIG. 7 may be incorporated as part of the previously described computerized devices, such as the television receivers, home automation engines, overlay devices, and/or communication devices. FIG. 7 provides a schematic illustration of one embodiment of a computer system 700 that can perform various steps of the methods provided by various embodiments. It should be noted that FIG. 7 is meant only to provide a generalized illustration of various components, any or all of which may be utilized as appropriate. FIG. 7, therefore, broadly illustrates how individual system elements may be implemented in a relatively separated or relatively more integrated manner.

The computer system 700 is shown comprising hardware elements that can be electrically coupled via a bus 705 (or may otherwise be in communication, as appropriate). The hardware elements may include one or more processors 710, including without limitation one or more general-purpose processors and/or one or more special-purpose processors (such as digital signal processing chips, graphics acceleration processors, video decoders, and/or the like); one or more input devices 715, which can include without limitation a mouse, a keyboard, remote control, and/or the like; and one or more output devices 720, which can include without limitation a display device, a printer, and/or the like.

The computer system 700 may further include (and/or be in communication with) one or more non-transitory storage devices 725, which can comprise, without limitation, local and/or network accessible storage, and/or can include, without limitation, a disk drive, a drive array, an optical storage device, a solid-state storage device, such as a random access memory (“RAM”), and/or a read-only memory (“ROM”), which can be programmable, flash-updateable and/or the like. Such storage devices may be configured to implement any appropriate data stores, including without limitation, various file systems, database structures, and/or the like.

The computer system 700 might also include a communications subsystem 730, which can include without limitation a modem, a network card (wireless or wired), an infrared communication device, a wireless communication device, and/or a chipset (such as a Bluetooth™ device, an 802.11 device, a WiFi device, a WiMax device, cellular communication device, etc.), and/or the like. The communications subsystem 730 may permit data to be exchanged with a network (such as the network described below, to name one example), other computer systems, and/or any other devices described herein. In many embodiments, the computer system 700 will further comprise a working memory 735, which can include a RAM or ROM device, as described above.

The computer system 700 also can comprise software elements, shown as being currently located within the working memory 735, including an operating system 740, device drivers, executable libraries, and/or other code, such as one or more application programs 745, which may comprise computer programs provided by various embodiments, and/or may be designed to implement methods, and/or configure systems, provided by other embodiments, as described herein. Merely by way of example, one or more procedures described with respect to the method(s) discussed above might be implemented as code and/or instructions executable by a computer (and/or a processor within a computer); in an aspect, then, such code and/or instructions can be used to configure and/or adapt a general purpose computer (or other device) to perform one or more operations in accordance with the described methods.

A set of these instructions and/or code might be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, such as the non-transitory storage device(s) 725 described above. In some cases, the storage medium might be incorporated within a computer system, such as computer system 700. In other embodiments, the storage medium might be separate from a computer system (e.g., a removable medium, such as a compact disc), and/or provided in an installation package, such that the storage medium can be used to program, configure, and/or adapt a general purpose computer with the instructions/code stored thereon. These instructions might take the form of executable code, which is executable by the computer system 700 and/or might take the form of source and/or installable code, which, upon compilation and/or installation on the computer system 700 (e.g., using any of a variety of generally available compilers, installation programs, compression/decompression utilities, etc.), then takes the form of executable code.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that substantial variations may be made in accordance with specific requirements. For example, customized hardware might also be used, and/or particular elements might be implemented in hardware, software (including portable software, such as applets, etc.), or both. Further, connection to other computing devices such as network input/output devices may be employed.

As mentioned above, in one aspect, some embodiments may employ a computer system (such as the computer system 700) to perform methods in accordance with various embodiments of the invention. According to a set of embodiments, some or all of the procedures of such methods are performed by the computer system 700 in response to processor 710 executing one or more sequences of one or more instructions (which might be incorporated into the operating system 740 and/or other code, such as an application program 745) contained in the working memory 735. Such instructions may be read into the working memory 735 from another computer-readable medium, such as one or more of the non-transitory storage device(s) 725. Merely by way of example, execution of the sequences of instructions contained in the working memory 735 might cause the processor(s) 710 to perform one or more procedures of the methods described herein.

The terms “machine-readable medium,” “computer-readable storage medium” and “computer-readable medium,” as used herein, refer to any medium that participates in providing data that causes a machine to operate in a specific fashion. These mediums may be non-transitory. In an embodiment implemented using the computer system 700, various computer-readable media might be involved in providing instructions/code to processor(s) 710 for execution and/or might be used to store and/or carry such instructions/code. In many implementations, a computer-readable medium is a physical and/or tangible storage medium. Such a medium may take the form of a non-volatile media or volatile media. Non-volatile media include, for example, optical and/or magnetic disks, such as the non-transitory storage device(s) 725. Volatile media include, without limitation, dynamic memory, such as the working memory 735.

Common forms of physical and/or tangible computer-readable media include, for example, a floppy disk, a flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, or any other magnetic medium, a CD-ROM, any other optical medium, any other physical medium with patterns of marks, a RAM, a PROM, EPROM, a FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other medium from which a computer can read instructions and/or code.

Various forms of computer-readable media may be involved in carrying one or more sequences of one or more instructions to the processor(s) 710 for execution. Merely by way of example, the instructions may initially be carried on a magnetic disk and/or optical disc of a remote computer. A remote computer might load the instructions into its dynamic memory and send the instructions as signals over a transmission medium to be received and/or executed by the computer system 700.

The communications subsystem 730 (and/or components thereof) generally will receive signals, and the bus 705 then might carry the signals (and/or the data, instructions, etc. carried by the signals) to the working memory 735, from which the processor(s) 710 retrieves and executes the instructions. The instructions received by the working memory 735 may optionally be stored on a non-transitory storage device 725 either before or after execution by the processor(s) 710.

It should further be understood that the components of computer system 700 can be distributed across a network. For example, some processing may be performed in one location using a first processor while other processing may be performed by another processor remote from the first processor. Other components of computer system 700 may be similarly distributed. As such, computer system 700 may be interpreted as a distributed computing system that performs processing in multiple locations. In some instances, computer system 700 may be interpreted as a single computing device, such as a distinct laptop, desktop computer, or the like, depending on the context.

The methods, systems, and devices discussed above are examples. Various configurations may omit, substitute, or add various procedures or components as appropriate. For instance, in alternative configurations, the methods may be performed in an order different from that described, and/or various stages may be added, omitted, and/or combined. Also, features described with respect to certain configurations may be combined in various other configurations. Different aspects and elements of the configurations may be combined in a similar manner. Also, technology evolves and, thus, many of the elements are examples and do not limit the scope of the disclosure or claims.

Specific details are given in the description to provide a thorough understanding of example configurations (including implementations). However, configurations may be practiced without these specific details. For example, well-known circuits, processes, algorithms, structures, and techniques have been shown without unnecessary detail in order to avoid obscuring the configurations. This description provides example configurations only, and does not limit the scope, applicability, or configurations of the claims. Rather, the preceding description of the configurations will provide those skilled in the art with an enabling description for implementing described techniques. Various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements without departing from the spirit or scope of the disclosure.

Also, configurations may be described as a process which is depicted as a flow diagram or block diagram. Although each may describe the operations as a sequential process, many of the operations can be performed in parallel or concurrently. In addition, the order of the operations may be rearranged. A process may have additional steps not included in the figure. Furthermore, examples of the methods may be implemented by hardware, software, firmware, middleware, microcode, hardware description languages, or any combination thereof. When implemented in software, firmware, middleware, or microcode, the program code or code segments to perform the necessary tasks may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as a storage medium. Processors may perform the described tasks.

Having described several example configurations, various modifications, alternative constructions, and equivalents may be used without departing from the spirit of the disclosure. For example, the above elements may be components of a larger system, wherein other rules may take precedence over or otherwise modify the application of the invention. Also, a number of steps may be undertaken before, during, or after the above elements are considered. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method for providing home automation notifications, the method comprising: receiving, by a home automation host system, a selection of a home automation event to trigger transmission of a home automation notification; receiving, by a home automation host system, selection of a first group of users to receive the home automation notification; determining, by the home automation host system, the home automation event has occurred at a home automation device in communication with the home automation host system; transmitting, by the home automation host system, the home automation notification to a plurality of destinations associated with the first group of users, wherein a first communication path associated with each user of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification; monitoring, by the home automation host system, for up to a defined period of time, for a receipt response from each of the plurality of destinations; receiving, by the home automation host system, receipt responses from a first subset of the plurality of destinations; determining, by the home automation host system, the defined period of time has expired; identifying, by the home automation host system, a second subset of the plurality of destinations associated with a subset of the first group of users from which the receipt response has not been received; and transmitting, by the home automation host system, to each destination of the second subset of the plurality of destinations, the home automation notification, wherein a second communication path associated with each user of the subset of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification.
 2. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 1, wherein the plurality of destinations comprises a plurality of mobile devices, each mobile device of the plurality of mobile devices being associated with a different user of the first group of users.
 3. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 2, further comprising: executing, by a mobile device of the plurality of mobile devices, an application that functions as a background process for monitoring for home automation notifications received via a plurality of communication paths.
 4. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 3, further comprising: monitoring, by the application being executed by the mobile device, multiple communication paths for home automation notifications.
 5. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 4, further comprising: determining, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the home automation notification has been received via the first communication path; and transmitting, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the first communication path.
 6. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 5, wherein the first communication path is a push notification communication path and the receipt response is transmitted via a communication path other than the first communication path.
 7. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 4, further comprising: determining, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the home automation notification has been received via the second communication path; and transmitting, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the second communication path.
 8. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 7, wherein determining the home automation notification has been received via the second communication path comprises: monitoring, by the application being executed by the mobile device, simple message service (SMS) messages being received by the mobile device for a string of characters indicative of the home automation notification.
 9. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 1, further comprising: receiving, by the home automation host system, a message from a user of the first group of users, the message being indicative of a request to be excluded from receiving home automation notifications associated with the home automation event.
 10. The method for providing home automation notifications of claim 9, further comprising: determining that at least one additional user is present in the first group of users in addition to the user; and removing, by the home automation host system, the user from the first group of users based on the message and determining that the at least one additional user is present in the first group of users.
 11. A system for providing home automation notifications, the system comprising: a television receiver that receives television programming via a television service provider network, the television receiver configured to output video content; and an overlay device that receives the video content from the television receiver and outputs modified video content to a display device, the overlay device comprising: one or more processors; and a memory communicatively coupled with and readable by the one or more processors and having stored therein processor-readable instructions which, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to: receive a selection of a home automation event to trigger transmission of a home automation notification; receive selection of a first group of users to receive the home automation notification; determine the home automation event has occurred at a home automation device in communication with the overlay device; transmit the home automation notification to a plurality of destinations associated with the first group of users, wherein a first communication path associated with each user of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification; monitor for up to a defined period of time, for a receipt response from each of the plurality of destinations; receive receipt responses from a first subset of the plurality of destinations; determine the defined period of time has expired; identify a second subset of the plurality of destinations associated with a subset of the first group of users from which the receipt response has not been received; and transmit to each destination of the second subset of the plurality of destinations, the home automation notification, wherein a second communication path associated with each user of the subset of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification.
 12. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 11, wherein the plurality of destinations comprises a plurality of mobile devices, each mobile device of the plurality of mobile devices being associated with a different user of the first group of users.
 13. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 12, the system further comprising: a mobile device that executes an application as a background process for monitoring for home automation notifications received via a plurality of communication paths, the mobile device being part of the plurality of mobile devices.
 14. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 13, wherein the mobile device is configured to: determine, using the application being executed by the mobile device, the home automation notification has been received via the first communication path; and transmit, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the first communication path.
 15. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 14, wherein the first communication path is a push notification communication path and the receipt response is transmitted via a communication path other than the first communication path.
 16. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 13, wherein the mobile device is further configured to: determine, using the application being executed by the mobile device, the home automation notification has been received via the second communication path; and transmitting, by the application being executed by the mobile device, the receipt response, wherein the receipt response is indicative of the mobile device and is indicative of the second communication path.
 17. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 11, wherein the memory stores further processor-readable instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to: receive a message from a user of the first group of users, the message being indicative of a request to be excluded from receiving home automation notifications associated with the home automation event.
 18. The system for providing home automation notifications of claim 17, wherein the memory stores further processor-readable instructions, which when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to: determine that at least one additional user is present in the first group of users in addition to the user; and remove the user from the first group of users based on the message and determining that the at least one additional user is present in the first group of users.
 19. A non-transitory processor-readable medium for providing home automation notifications, comprising processor-readable instructions configured to cause one or more processors to: receive a selection of a home automation event to trigger transmission of a home automation notification; receive selection of a first group of users to receive the home automation notification; determine the home automation event has occurred at a home automation device in communication with a home automation system; transmit the home automation notification to a plurality of destinations associated with the first group of users, wherein a first communication path associated with each user of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification; monitor for up to a defined period of time, for a receipt response from each of the plurality of destinations; receive receipt responses from a first subset of the plurality of destinations; determine the defined period of time has expired; identify a second subset of the plurality of destinations associated with a subset of the first group of users from which the receipt response has not been received; and transmit to each destination of the second subset of the plurality of destinations, the home automation notification, wherein a second communication path associated with each user of the subset of the first group of users is used for transmitting the home automation notification.
 20. The non-transitory processor-readable medium for providing home automation notifications of claim 19, wherein the processor-readable instructions are further configured to cause the one or more processors to: receive a message from a user of the first group of users, the message being indicative of a request to be excluded from receiving home automation notifications associated with the home automation event; determine that at least one additional user is present in the first group of users in addition to the user; and remove the user from the first group of users based on the message and determining that the at least one additional user is present in the first group of users. 